We're looking for your input!

There is an area of the collection that we are currently evaluating and would like to expand, but we are in need of some assistance: World Languages!

At the moment, we have small collections of Spanish, Russian, and Chinese books, and a few books in other languages (mostly dictionaries and how-to-learn books) here and there.  We have a small, but growing, collection of foreign films, and we have a collection of tapes and CDs to help one learn a language (or to help non-English speakers learn English). 

In the Children's room, we have a good-sized collection of books in Spanish that includes board books and picture books, both fiction and nonfiction.  Also in Children's, we have a collection of books to help kids learn a second language like Spanish, French, Japanese, and many others.

We are going to be adding several Spanish-language magazines to our library's collection.

We offer two Spanish-language databases on our website: Referencia Latina and Salud en Espanol, and several of our other electronic resources can be translated into Spanish (Compton's Encyclopedia for Children, and Tutor.com, for example). 

We also offer an online service called Mango Languages, that allows MAPL cardholders to choose from sixteen different languages (or English as a second language) and learn through online tutorials.  This service is FREE and can be accessed from any computer with a valid MAPL card.  Contact our Adult Services staff for more information!

Back to the original plea for help: We would like to add to our world languages collection -- books, CDs, DVDs -- but we'd like to hear from our patrons about which languages (and which subjects within those languages) most interest you.  It's easy to look at the census data to determine the Matawan-Aberdeen demographic, and we will take that information into account, but it would also be wonderful to hear from you -- our patrons -- and consider your feedback when making purchasing decisions.

So, if you would like to see another language represented, expansion of what we already offer, or if you have comments about the collections already existing here, please take a moment to e-mail me at kpaone@lmxac.org, give me a call at 732-583-9100, or stop by!  Thank you in advance for your assistance.